Protected's recent activity
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Comment on Ukrainians contemplate the once unthinkable: Losing the war with Russia in ~misc
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Comment on This is a teenager in ~life
Protected LinkThis has also been said on hackernews, but there are some issues with the visualizations, so exercise caution: First, the width of the three "bars" isn't the same, which can be misleading when...This has also been said on hackernews, but there are some issues with the visualizations, so exercise caution: First, the width of the three "bars" isn't the same, which can be misleading when comparing relative criteria; second, the arrow labels on the bars seem to be flipped in several visualizations (at time of writing), so always double check the color categories!
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Comment on Ukrainians contemplate the once unthinkable: Losing the war with Russia in ~misc
Protected Link ParentI'll piggyback on this comment to present my concurring opinion. I'd go as far as to say that regardless of whether it's an oil producer with nuclear weapons, if isolationist politics prevail in...I'll piggyback on this comment to present my concurring opinion.
The problem with this is that the US absolutely will face consequences, it will just take more time. US economy and geopolitical position require Europe to be stable and to see US as its most important and reliable partner. Isolationism may be "fair", but it absolutely will make the US worse off in the medium term.
I'd go as far as to say that regardless of whether it's an oil producer with nuclear weapons, if isolationist politics prevail in the US, the country will lose its dominant position forever, and find itself relegated to a much smaller role in the world stage, with a direct impact in the wealth and quality of life of its citizens. There are other gas station countries with nuclear weapons - Russia, for one - and that alone clearly isn't enough.
And please, I don't have to be told about all the other ways in which the US is a capable, productive country. I know! But the US is not special, not nearly as special as some US citizens may think. US industry is already in decline. There are other countries with brilliant minds and technological innovation. Other countries capable of producing excellent entertainment and eager to disseminate their own culture. Other countries ready to step in and grow the same crops, sell the same weapons, put more things in orbit. If the US isn't internationally involved, I foresee US-backed trade organizations and agreements, including intellectual property agreements, losing much of their relevance. Not to mention, of course, the US dollar.
I think both sides of the arguments being presented in this comments section have a point, and I agree that many american voters will not care about the long term, or about what's happening far away from their borders. Hell, when China displaces the US as the leading world power, they'll never quite understand what, why, or how it happened. It will still happen, though, and I find it highly undesirable regardless. I don't see myself in the values professed by China's leadership.
The US finds itself in a position of having to intervene in other countries because they put themselves in that position in the first place - because this is beneficial to their country. The sudden argument that there is no tacit agreement regarding this arrangement after americans benefited from it for two generations seems like the pinnacle of hipocrisy.
Obviously europeans also benefited in the ways people have already explained, and no doubt it was foolish of us not to be better prepared for this situation. But the same argument some have made about the short-sightedness of the american electorate also applies to the european ones. Could european voters have been sold on military spending during a time of peace, when that spending could have gone to projects they thought more urgent? Would that have been a wise political move?
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Protected Link ParentI agree with everything you said. I would like the map to remember everything I solve, and I really hate those stupid fractal puzzles. Are those the mysteries up above lucent waters? I haven't...I agree with everything you said. I would like the map to remember everything I solve, and I really hate those stupid fractal puzzles.
orbs that you unlock with riddles attached
Are those the mysteries up above lucent waters? I haven't tried any of those yet although I've unlocked many. Feels like I should unlock the whole map first.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Protected LinkI guess it's time to write something about Islands of Insight. I played a bunch of this game and I'm far from done. I know this is unlike me, but this is, uh, a puzzle solving game. The developers...I guess it's time to write something about Islands of Insight. I played a bunch of this game and I'm far from done. I know this is unlike me, but this is, uh, a puzzle solving game. The developers boast "more than ten thousand puzzles!" That's probably true.
The best comparison for this game is The Witness, I'd say. Like The Witness, IOI features an open world crammed full of abstract puzzles which you can engage with and solve at your leisure. There are some key differences, though: Immediately, you notice this is an online game, and you can see dozens of other players running around the same instance as you, and they see you. There's also a lot more freedom of movement, with flight, double jump, super jump, etc. letting you reach everywhere with ease (even working around quest progression). Notably also, the world is divided in two types of areas: A big sky island divided in five regions, and many "enclaves" made of much tinier sky islands. Enclaves are designed areas with predetermined puzzles, and solving these is permanent and gives you "mirabilis," your main metric for progression (there is also a currency you can use to buy clothes and upgrades). The mainland, on the other hand, has randomly generated puzzles which reset every day. They can still be used for some types of progression and quests, but largely feel like a way to give players essentially limitless content.
While The Witness only has one main type of puzzle, with different areas introducing different rules, IOI starts you off by explaining five types of "puzzle". Throughout the game, this is expanded to a whopping 24 types of "puzzle". But they also introduce new types of rules to the "main puzzle type", the logic grid (which is about coloring tiles in a grid either black or white, and is extremely solid), adding up to 13 different types of rules that can appear in these puzzles. When you unlock a new puzzle type or logic grid rule by solving the enclave or a short tutorial progression of puzzles that first teaches it, it becomes available in the randomly generated puzzles of the mainland. Honestly, this progression is pretty well done. You really do get slowly better at all of these puzzles and mechanics, and they do get pretty challenging at the hardest levels. You can't look anywhere without seeing some kind of puzzle, and since many types can be solved very quickly, the game can be pretty addictive, with the player solving puzzle after puzzle, always thinking "just one more!"
I should stop here to say I wrote "puzzle" between double quotes above because these actually comprise different types of minigame beyond the abstract, self-contained ones (which are strictly the most interesting ones). Multiple puzzle types are perspective puzzles, which require the player to position themselves in the game world based on clues or other mecanics and click things - not too different from The Witness either, cough cough. Others are about going through things, chasing things and finding things in the environment, making them more of a grind. You have to learn to do these things, but you don't have to go out of your way to do more of them than you want to.
Jonathan Blow, designer of The Witness and by all accounts a pretty intelligent guy, has gone on record explaining that The Witness doesn't have "a plot" because they realized half way through development it was adding annoying friction to players' engagement with the game (or something like that). The developers of IOI unfortunately did not take this lesson to heart. IOI contains a crapton of, uh, sprites? Ghosts? Anyway, they have vague, abstract insights for you. They have names and such. There's a whole lore thing. According to my menu I have more than 50 pieces of lore I can revise at my leisure (and more to collect). I confess I don't care at all. I'm here to solve puzzles! I smash my keyboard to get through the lore as quickly as possible and do not read a single word. It's really not necessary or interesting to me.
Graphically, IOI doesn't look bad. It's this vast, vast expanse. You can see far away and fly all over the place. The five mainland areas all have different "biomes" of a kind. However, it's all crammed so full of ruins, buildings, puzzles, creeks, trees, terrain ruggedness, it just blends together. It's extremely busy to the eye, it's hard to spot anything (which some puzzle types definitely leverage), but worse, the "beauty" of the world can ring a little hollow. Don't expect The Witness's tight level design (one of the best in history, IMHO). Expect trees growing out of rock outcroppings.
I have yet to engage with the social features much. A friend of mine got the game but we weren't able to play together yet. Someone sent me a friend request and then I never saw them again. You can emote at people, but everyone's always running or flying around chasing the next puzzle (me too!) If someone stops long enough to notice you, they're probably AFK. I'm not sure the social component of the game is working at all; the game should have been designed with better incentives for cooperation. I do like that the presence of the other players makes the world feel more alive; if I'm going to solve puzzles for five hours straight at least I have company!
In summary: This is like a puzzle solving roguelite, in that it can keep you entertained for dozens and dozens of hours. It's addictive, it's fun, it's good at not getting too frustrating, and it will probably suitably exercise your brain. It can also feel a bit tacky and full of cruft compared to more carefully designed games, but you can just ignore most of that. You will get more than enough for what you pay for this game. If you just want something clever to do during those 5 minute breaks between things, you can use this game for that, but don't get surprised when the next time you remember where you are, hours have gone by.
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Comment on How do you organize your phone's home screens and apps? in ~tech
Protected LinkI've been using the Nova Launcher for years. My home screen has four pages, which are, from left to right: Left (the hacker tab!): Access to settings, the file browser, the notification log,...I've been using the Nova Launcher for years.
My home screen has four pages, which are, from left to right:
- Left (the hacker tab!): Access to settings, the file browser, the notification log, magisk, terminal, connectbot, opnevpn, etc.
- Home (default): Big clock at the top, google folder, weather underground, aircon control and other very used apps.
- Right (the media tab!): Discord, Twitch, Photo gallery, VLC, etc. Play store and F-Droid are also both here.
- Calendar: This entire page just shows my google calendar (widget), so I can reach it very quickly.
Bottom row has the four usual suspects pinned: Dialer, SMS, browser (Firefox) and OpenCamera.
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Comment on Idaho libraries must move materials deemed harmful to children, or face lawsuits, under new law in ~books
Protected Link ParentI'm not a lawyer (or american), but let's see here... Uh-huh. Also: As an average person, from what I know of teenagers, this means... basically anything?I'm not a lawyer (or american), but let's see here...
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a school or public library, or an agent thereof, shall not promote, give, or make available to a minor:
Any ... material harmful to minors.
"Harmful to minors" includes in its meaning the quality of any material or of any performance or of any description or representation, in whatever form, of ... sexual conduct
"Sexual conduct" means any act of ..., homosexuality, ...Uh-huh.
Also:
Appeals to the prurient interest of minors as judged by the average person
As an average person, from what I know of teenagers, this means... basically anything?
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Comment on Jon Stewart on the false promises of AI in ~tech
Protected Link ParentWe're all saying the same thing about capitalism. I gather @lou has the same opinion as you do about the video's intent to call out people like that, which seems very possible. Really, Jon uses a...We're all saying the same thing about capitalism. I gather @lou has the same opinion as you do about the video's intent to call out people like that, which seems very possible. Really, Jon uses a lot of play clip, stare meaningfully at the camera while people laugh moments which leave some room for interpretation, so we can all be right. I'm more used to John Oliver's verbose sarcasm when it comes to this type of video!
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Comment on Discord to start showing ads for gamers to boost revenue in ~tech
Protected Link ParentI agree that there's a bunch of annoying cruft on top of Discord's core (very solid) product. I have some measure of control over the servers I use for the most part, and I do my best to disable...I agree that there's a bunch of annoying cruft on top of Discord's core (very solid) product. I have some measure of control over the servers I use for the most part, and I do my best to disable or discourage all that stuff.
On the other hand, I think that people using Discord for things they shouldn't be using it for isn't the product's fault. It's a separate issue.
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Comment on What's something you've been mulling over recently? in ~talk
Protected Link ParentA Steam Deck, a Playdate and a Kobo? That's all of the cool devices! Normally I add a few prog/concept albums to my phone and listen to them in full on the flight. Thinking about it, if I had a...A Steam Deck, a Playdate and a Kobo? That's all of the cool devices!
Normally I add a few prog/concept albums to my phone and listen to them in full on the flight. Thinking about it, if I had a Steam Deck I'd probably just bring something with extreme replayability, like Binding of Isaac. I dislike flying so it's best to bring something that helps me turn off my brain rather than constantly noticing the passage of time.
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Comment on Jon Stewart on the false promises of AI in ~tech
Protected Link ParentYes, I absolutely agree. So it's disingenuous for Jon Stewart to present it as something specifically about AI. Some of the snippets he mocks are not - context aside - wrong. And I do appreciate...Yes, I absolutely agree. So it's disingenuous for Jon Stewart to present it as something specifically about AI. Some of the snippets he mocks are not - context aside - wrong. And I do appreciate when politicians can admit they don't know something!
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Comment on Jon Stewart on the false promises of AI in ~tech
Protected LinkThis is not the only recent Jon Stewart video that rings a little hollow to me. It is the nature of productivity - if you can do more with less effort, then fewer workers are required to...This is not the only recent Jon Stewart video that rings a little hollow to me. It is the nature of productivity - if you can do more with less effort, then fewer workers are required to accomplish the same objectives. This is not inherently a bad thing. Progress has always been about that, and there's no reason (nor is there a chance in hell anyway) to roll back progress when that can mean a better life for the average person.
The problem is that this increase in value creation doesn't go directly to the worker. People need money to live, which means they need jobs - even when they aren't strictly necessary - which in turn means market forces funnel the vast majority of the additional value that was created to a select few. So we end up with massive inequality, lots of pointless jobs, and frustrated, depressed workers. Society needs to shift to a paradigm that's more accomodating of the reality that we are much more efficient at sustaining ourselves and creating value than we used to be (and will keep getting even better), and that allows everyone to live with dignity even as jobs become obsolete.
It's stupid that the main thing we're using recent AI models for is creative output, but it's also only important that AI can recombine existing creative work into new creative work if you assign that creative work mainly a monetary value. Break away from that paradigm where the feedback loop seems increasingly designed to exclude the vast majority of people and we can enjoy creating and engaging with art regardless of what AIs did or didn't do. As someone who mainly creates intangible stuff, it just doesn't matter. When I program, or write, or make a video, I don't care about AI, and never will; I do it because I like to create, and I consume these things because I enjoy engaging with the work of others.
(Sorry to be such a starry-eyed idealist.)
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Comment on From its start, Gmail conditioned us to trade privacy for free services in ~tech
Protected Link ParentI run e-mail and the most difficult thing about it is dealing with Google's and Microsoft's random, temperamental spam blocking constantly breaking everyone else's stuff for no reason, regardless...I run e-mail and the most difficult thing about it is dealing with Google's and Microsoft's random, temperamental spam blocking constantly breaking everyone else's stuff for no reason, regardless of how unwarranted. Conversely, I get more spam through in my gmail than spamassassin lets through in my (older) non gmail address. Something went very wrong a long time ago.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
Protected (edited )LinkAfter all the puzzling in The Talos Principle 2, I figured I'd relax with a nice platformer, which is how I found myself playing The Cub, the first of three Steam Sale purchases. You play as a...After all the puzzling in The Talos Principle 2, I figured I'd relax with a nice platformer, which is how I found myself playing The Cub, the first of three Steam Sale purchases.
You play as a feral child (raised by wolves!) in the post-apocalyptic ruins of the human civilization on Earth. You found an astronaut's helmet, which constantly plays a transmission of Radio Nostalgia From Mars, which you can hear on youtube. The idea is that a few surviving wealthy humans fled to Mars on rockets. They don't like it there, though, and are sending an expedition to see if it's OK to come back. These martians really want to... capture? kill? the cub, and also - we're told - play golf, which is seemingly a reference to a previous game by the same developers which I did not play.
The idea is pretty original and the visual aesthetic of the game is pleasant and consistent. There is OK voice acting for the cub in addition to the radio transmission, which is well mixed. Too bad it tends to cut out when you pause, leaving you with no music until you reach the next area (and this is seemingly irrecoverable).
Through the radio transmission, narration cutscenes and collectibles, the game hits you with the designers' opinion about humankind with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Hint: It's extremely negative, pretty much the opposite of TTP2. The misanthropy is extreme, but also hollow and cartoonish. The game seems to be trying to hit about fifty points at the same time, including child labor, wealth inequality and species' extinction but also mixing in things like GMO food that kind of erode the credibility of the whole thing even further. Corporations and millionaires are mentioned directly with just tiny spelling changes, like the evil Jeff Bozos or rocket mogul Musker, founder of Tesla City on Mars.
Instead, we're supposed to sympathize with the protagonist child, who - the game will drop offhand - is a (noble?) cannibal, and in addition to eating the human visitors from Mars also keeps trying to get them, and himself, killed in a most infuriating manner. None of his story makes a lick of sense - there are many feral children, but no feral adults. Maybe the wolves ate the adults? He learned to speak english from Radio Nostalgia, and at one point takes a sabbatical to learn every single academic discipline imaginable but when the game resumes he hasn't aged a day. What?
There are several different types of collectibles you're trying to find (and which grant achievements), vestiges of humankind's inglorious past, including books, newspapers with really on the nose headlines, huggable toys that say things about consumerism, "USB" sticks with messages and more. There seems to be no way to see how many you have of each of these. The whole UI is in fact severely lacking. Maybe they figured they didn't need one, since every single hazard instakills you.
The platforming is just miserable. Trigger zones seem unreliable, such that you learn not to trust that your moves are repeatable and get yourself killed, compounding the problem. It's often hard to tell where you can stand or not. Enemies will rush at you from offscreen. The checkpointing is extremely uneven. The game embraces how easy it is to die by giving you an achievement after you die in 10 different ways (there are more than 10). In one sequence, you need to jump onto the back of a bison, and then ride the herd of bison while occasionally a bison will buck and throw you off and you need to adjust your fall so you land on another bison. There are no visual cues, and if you're in the wrong part of the screen it's impossible not to die, and every time you die you restart seven seconds before the beginning of the whole sequence. This sort of thing happened multiple times. Fortunately, you can finish this game in less than 7 hours.
Back to puzzle solving, then. My next game was The Entropy Centre. My fiber has been out (again) for five days and counting which gave me time to play through this in just a few days! This one can be solved in 13 hours if you're good at the puzzles.
TEC is really obviously inspired by Portal and Portal 2 (the mazelike hallways with desks and computers also brought The Stanley Parable to mind). Except, unlike most Portal-likes, and much to my surprise, this game largely created by a single developer is... really good?
One thing that separates good from bad narrative puzzle solving games is whether it makes any sense for you to be there solving those puzzles. Portal/2 and TTP/2 both have good reasons, but TEC puts serious work into having an interesting sci-fi mystery story incorporating the puzzles (which I won't spoil), and I really enjoyed the whole premise (even if the twist is largely predictable).
You wake up with no memories as Aria, a Junior Puzzle Operative (yes, that's her job). Throughout most of the game, you're accompanied by your trusty
portaltime rewind gun, Astra. Both Aria and Astra are well voice acted! Because, yes, your gun has an AI assistant that chats with you. Unlike Glados, she's actually very friendly and helpful. The ability to rewind time is key to solving the puzzles, which make use of a series of different types of "cubes" which are affected by physics. You can store 38 seconds of time per object, and rewind time for each object separately, but the gun's ability also comes up a lot when navigating the ruins of The Entropy Centre and even when being attacked by crazed cleaner robots, since you can rewind the "rubble" of broken things to make them whole again and rewind blasts to return them to sender. The physics, puzzle solving mechanics and time rewind gun all seem quite polished and work well; I found no issues. (The combat scenes weren't strictly necessary, but there aren't too many and you can get through them without much effort.)Since you're alone (except for robots and AIs), you have to find "intel" by carefully checking people's e-mail in all the functioning computers you find (there are many, though not nearly as many as broken ones) in order to piece together what happened to you and to TEC. This works pretty well, and is also bolstered by a couple dream sequences.
I don't have much else to say. In terms of production quality this is obviously no TTP2. Some graphical elements can become repetitive, and I found a few glitches. But overall this was fun and interesting to play, clearly the devs worked hard to make it the best it could be, and I'm looking forward to checking out more of their games in the future.
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Comment on Discord to start showing ads for gamers to boost revenue in ~tech
Protected Link ParentOut of curiosity, what frustrates you about Discord? I mostly like the way it works, compared to alternatives.Out of curiosity, what frustrates you about Discord? I mostly like the way it works, compared to alternatives.
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Comment on What are some of your favorite PlayStation 1 games? Any odd or unique ones worth playing? in ~games
Protected Link ParentIt's not so much about ball rolling as local shifting gravity, that is, you can role around all 6 sides of free floating surfaces. This was also the first game that came to mind (probably not a...It's not so much about ball rolling as local shifting gravity, that is, you can role around all 6 sides of free floating surfaces. This was also the first game that came to mind (probably not a surprise considering how many puzzle games I play). It's pretty long, so lots of value.
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Comment on Discord to start showing ads for gamers to boost revenue in ~tech
Protected Link ParentYou're really going to have to compromise on this one, since it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. Discord isn't obscure because everyone is currently there, and everything else is super obscure by...Isn't super obscure and will cause groans
You're really going to have to compromise on this one, since it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. Discord isn't obscure because everyone is currently there, and everything else is super obscure by comparison because people are elsewhere (on Discord).
For better or for worse, Matrix with the Element client is the federated Discord-like. Rooms are supported. Discord's role system is missing (though there are permissions) - I consider this a massive mistake. "Servers" are split into homeservers (which you can self-host or even run out of your client), which are not conceptually isolated from each other, and spaces, which conceptually aggregate people and rooms. Encryption is built in. It can run out of a web browser, so it's cross platform. Federated data exchange can take some time under certain circumstances (first joining a large room from a remote homeserver). Voice and video rooms exist but they're far from as good or stable as Discord's in my experience.
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Comment on Which anime or manga transcend the boundaries of genre and medium? in ~anime
Protected Link ParentThank you for the recommendation. I've never really tried to get into Lupin the third. Michiko is such an interesting character! I generally am most glad to have experienced stories I hadn't seen...Thank you for the recommendation. I've never really tried to get into Lupin the third. Michiko is such an interesting character! I generally am most glad to have experienced stories I hadn't seen elsewhere before, up to a point. And these stories all have real value. It blows my mind how Legend of the Galactic Heroes gets more relevant every year. Shows like like Samurai 7 or Ergo Proxy are more similar to other IPs, but they stuck with me anyway, maybe because there's a stylistic uniqueness to them.
If you like all of these you probably also like some of the stuff I excluded from my list for being more niche or not for everyone, such as Infinite Ryvius ("Lord of the flies in space"), Steins;Gate (I love me some timeline spaghetti), Katanagatari (relationship dynamic), Nodame Cantabile (protagonist) and Great Teacher Onizuka (not even sure how to summarize it), Haibane Reinmei (...) I think shows like those are best recommended to people who don't know them as part of a dialogue.
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Comment on Which anime or manga transcend the boundaries of genre and medium? in ~anime
Protected Link ParentYes! I really much prefer Stand Alone Complex to the movies.Yes! I really much prefer Stand Alone Complex to the movies.
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Comment on Which anime or manga transcend the boundaries of genre and medium? in ~anime
Protected (edited )LinkEDIT: Edited in some reasons I'd forgotten to include! I've been watching this stuff for decades, so I'm not going to try to make an exhaustive list, as that would take a very long amount of time...EDIT: Edited in some reasons I'd forgotten to include!
a truly worthy piece of fiction you're glad to have experienced
I've been watching this stuff for decades, so I'm not going to try to make an exhaustive list, as that would take a very long amount of time right now. But here are some informal picks - naturally colored by my own preferences. Do excuse me if any of these didn't age well and feel free to point out shortcomings I may have long forgotten - or never even noticed - in a reply.
Others have already recommended, and I definitely agree with, the following popular shows: Cowboy Bebop, Your Lie In April, Ping Pong, anything by Miyazaki (including Future Boy Conan) or Satoshi Kon, and Grave of the Fireflies.
Hikaru no go single-handedly made go popular among the youth in several countries, including Japan. It does have some genre tropes, but is characterized by a protagonist who grows physically and mentally, an interesting and tragic mentor character and a real love for the subject matter. The anime also has go lessons after each episode!
I've always been a big fan of the underrated Kino no tabi. Kino travels a world of highly isolated "countries" on her talking motorcycle Hermes, and never stays anywhere for very long. The story is episodic and has an allegorical quality to it. While Kino is objectively a badass who is more than capable of defending herself (and sometimes has to), she prefers to live and let live, to experience these countries as a visitor.
Legend of the Galactic Heroes (the original) is considered by many, including myself, to be one of the best animes ever made. This direct to video series from the 90s is a full blown space opera about a conflict between two systems of government, both of which control many planets - a corrupt democracy and an idealistic autocracy, and the problems with both. It has a vast cast of named characters with deep backstories and great design, interesting worldbuilding and doesn't shy away from nerding out about its world's history and battle tactics. It's also known for many famous voice actors having worked on it.
While we're talking about science fiction, I just learned Ergo Proxy is banned in China. That has to mean something, right? This is a Blade Runner style post apocalyptic show about a criminal investigation in a world of domed cities and self-aware androids. I watched this before Blade Runner.
Michiko & Hatchin: Hana (Hatchin) is a serious girl who is rescued/kidnapped from her abusive foster family by escaped convict Michiko, a free spirit who claims to be her mother. It takes place in the country of "Diamandra" - it's totally Brazil though. The people and the places look the part, although brazilians can point out a lot of inaccuracies (hey, it's Diamandra after all!) I do have a soft spot for these shows that just look totally different from the vast majority of what the anime industry churns out.
I hesitate a little to mention it, because it can be extremely triggering (child abuse and worse), but Erased is the story of a man who returns to the body and time of his childhood self to prevent the murder of his friend and classmate. The anime is good; there's a Netflix live action drama I haven't watched (but I seem to recall it has some differences).
To Your Eternity S1: The story of an immortal being who can become anyone who dies beside them, and their travels across the world and friendships and relationships. Slight spoiler because I thought S2 wasn't as good: The overarching theme is whether it's worth living at all if living brings with it suffering. Possibly the most touching ep1 ever made.
Sorry about all the science fiction, but it's good science fiction! Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song tells the story of Vivy, an android created for singing and performing, and her attempts to avert a post-singularity war between humans and AIs. I enjoyed how Vivy develops as a character and how the plot ties together.
Samurai 7 is "Seven Samurai" as an anime taking place in a futuristic world. I think it's generally agreed the story is memorable, so it's about whether you like this presentation of it, which I did.
Mushishi is the highly episodic story of Ginko, who travels the land helping people who live with, or have been infected by, mushi. While mushi can mean "insect", these are spiritural parasites - they're neither good nor bad, simply a part of the world, but most people don't understand them or aren't aware of their existence. Each episode brings new people and a new situation, and there's this extremely rural Japan melancholy feel to the whole thing that's just great.
Planetes, one of the most beloved astronaut anime, opened my eyes to the problem of space debris for the first time! And that's what this show is about - the unglorified, extremely dangerous, but vitally important job of collecting garbage in orbit.
Kaiba (same director as Ping Pong) takes place in a world where people's selves can swap bodies by having their memory chips swapped, a bit like Altered Carbon. The protagonist is trying to figure out who they are in confusing and often hostile surroundings. This show is beautiful, awesome and I recommend watching it twice if you had trouble keeping track of all the body swapping ;)
I'll stop here for now. If the reasons are unclear for any show, you can assume I really resonated with either the characters' geographical or personal journeys, or that they were just really likeable. I like good characters!
Long term planning can definitely be a weakness in democracies where politicians rotate after serving a short term (or need to "buy" votes to hold on to their positions).